THE account of Naaman's healing through the mediation of Elisha, given in the second book of Kings, illustrates the experience of some in the present day who come to Christian Science for healing. For, like Naaman, they sometimes come in moods of pomp and worldly circumstance, in the expectation of obtaining spiritual benefits by the mere bestowal of a material bonus. And they expect the modern prophet of healing to come out to meet them, as Naaman so naively hoped of Elisha,—at least on their own mental levels; to assume, possibly, some dramatic attitude of calling "on the name of the Lord his God" in impressive formula; or even to "strike his hand over the place," after the approved ancient and modern method of magnetic cure!
When the Christian Science practitioner, like Elisha, does none of these things, pays no homage to personal or worldly greatness, adopts no spectacular attitudes or formulas, resorts to no literal laying on of hands, —in short, makes no conditions except the spiritual ones of humility and obedience to divine Principle, symbolized in Naaman's case by the prophet's message to "go and wash in Jordan seven times,"—then the mortal thought is fain to go away "in a rage," as did Naaman, and solace itself with the boast that the "rivers of Damascus" are better, anyway, "than all the waters of Israel"!
This boasted Damascus would seem to be solid and familiar ground to mortal feet, notable and historic ground even in the days of Naaman. It was reputed to have been founded by Uz, grandson of that Shem who is defined, in part, in "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" by Mary Baker Eddy (p. 594), as "a corporeal mortal." Certainly its history and tradition reflect the brilliance of corporeal mortals. It became the home of kings and caliphs, of luxury and splendor; the first home of those Saracen princes who founded Bagdad, and made its name synonymous with adventure and romance. The Emperor Julian called it "the eye of the whole East;" and it had one great river, called the golden river, whose branches were Abana and Pharpar, of which Naaman, in his annoyance at Elisha, boasted.
